Sleepover (A McRoll in the REAL World Story by Mari, Sammy, and Ilna)
by ilna
Summary: Angie spends the day and night at the condo with the Rollinses, Grandma Ang, Mary, Aaron, and Joan. Part 8 of the 4th annual REAL World Holiday Marathon.


**Mari's Notes:** Sammy and Ilna - Thank you for another incredible year and another incredible co-write. Each one is more fun than the last.

Readers and REAL McRollers - Thank you as always for all the years of love and support.

 **Ilna's Notes:** Always a blast writing with you, ladies. In fact, that was so much fun let's do it again for tomorrow! ;-)

Readers and REAL McRollers - Thank you for your wonderful support! The fact that you love Joan and Angie so much always makes me smile.

 **Sammy's Notes:** Ditto

(Sammy has resolved to work on her A/Ns in the new year :-) )

 **Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 _Sleepover (A McRoll in the REAL World Story by Mari, Sammy, and Ilna)_

Steve walked into the nursery and barked a laugh. "Okay, then." He lifted Angie from her mother's arms and kissed her cheek before leaning down to kiss Catherine. "Clearly Elizabeth was here."

She smiled and reached for the child-sized purple duffle emblazoned with _GOIN' to GRANDMA and GRANDPA'S._

Catherine chuckled. "Mom said she needs to travel in style and apparently Dad thinks she's already too cool for a suitcase, so …" She waved a hand.

Steve made a face that elicited a laugh and he beamed at the reaction. "Your grandpa is definitely right. And now you have your first go bag." He took it from Catherine, weighing it in his hand. "Looks like you're packed." He kissed the baby's cheek again. "Your cousin Joanie must be bouncing off the walls waiting for you. Are you ready to have a sleepover like a big girl?" He looked at Catherine. "What's in here?"

"A few toys, and two big squares cut out of one of your old t-shirts and one of mine." She ran a hand over Angie's head and took her from his arms to snuggle her. "In case she gets a little fussy. I read that can help." Her eyes turned softer and she rocked the baby. When she grabbed her mother's chin, Catherine took the tiny hand and kissed it. "She's never been without both of us overnight before." She caught his look. "You're okay, right?"

"I'm not gonna lie, I'm gonna miss her," he said as he tickled Angie's tummy and she flailed her arms and legs with a giggle. "Daddy's gonna miss his girl, but you'll have so much fun with everyone fussing over you and you'll be home before you know it." He pushed her hair into place.

"It's getting wavy." Catherine smiled knowingly.

He grinned. "Yeah, but it's the same color as yours."

"I think she's going to have your wavy hair. And …" She lifted their daughter to face her and turned her to Steve. "I see more hazel in her eyes."

In spite of his hoping for his wife's beautiful brown eyes on their daughter, Steve smiled. Catherine looked so happy whenever she pointed out Angie's blue eyes were going hazel and the expression on her face when she noted how the baby's hair, straight at birth, seemed to be taking on some of his curl, he couldn't help but lean in and kiss her. "Okay."

Catherine laughed out loud. "Okay?"

"Okay." He shrugged. "I'm so glad she looks just like you … I get it."

"Good. Because I'm exactly that happy to see you in her. The cleft …" She tapped Angie's chin. "Wavy hair, and if the two sets of the most beautiful eyes I know happen to end up being the same color …" she beamed at him, "then I'm as happy as you are when you see me in Angie."

"See that, baby girl?" Steve took her and kissed her head before settling her into the carrier. "Your mommy and I love you so much, no matter what you look like, but there's your first lesson in compromise. You looking like her makes me happy and your having some of my traits makes her happy." He leaned close and whispered into the little ear, "And we've discussed how much I want her to be happy, right?"

"Baaaaa aahhh!" Angie answered, and Catherine looked over her shoulder from where she was zipping an adult-sized duffel bag of supplies to say, "All set!"

She clapped and Angie clasped her own hands, lacing her fingers before pushing her knuckles into her mouth. "Luckily you have so much stuff at Grandma and Grandpa's we don't need to pack a lot."

Hoisting the duffels while Steve took Angie, she followed them into the hall.

* * *

"They'we he'we!' Joan yelled excitedly the second she heard the front door of the condo open. "Time fo' the sleepovew!"

Angie picked up on Joan's excitement as soon as she was inside the condo and screeched excitedly.

Elizabeth looked slightly startled then smiled. "That's a new sound."

"That's the first time I've heard it too." Catherine squatted down so Joan could give Angie a kiss. "She must be very excited about the sleepover."

"I'm excited too, Baby Angie!" Joan said, practically vibrating. Mary and Aaron smiled as they looked on.

"So am I," Grandma Ang added, beaming.

"What about you?" Elizabeth asked Steve.

"I'm good. I'm fine." He ran a hand over the back of his head. "I know she's ready."

"You can put her things in our room if you don't mind." Elizabeth smiled indulgently. She knew the first night away was a hard thing for any parent. "And you two are welcome to stay for a few minutes if you want."

"Come see the decowations!" Joan grabbed Catherine's free hand and dragged her towards the living room. "Piwates and mewmaids!" She did a twirl in the middle of the room. "Isn't it pwetty?"

"It's very pretty," Catherine agreed.

"Look Uncle Steve," Joan called out as he entered the room, "Awiel!"

"It looks awesome in here." Steve picked her up. "Did you help with the decorations?"

She nodded then giggled as he tickled her.

"We'w gonna have so much fun!"

"Yes, we are," Joseph agreed. "We're gonna play games, and eat ice cream, and who knows what else."

"Just as long as it doesn't involve lip gloss," Steve said.

"Definitely no lip gloss," Mary said.

"Okay then," Catherine took a deep breath and hugged Angie tight to her chest. "I guess we should be going."

Joan looked horrified. "Baby Angie not goin', is she?"

"No." Catherine smiled softly. "She's staying here to have fun with you." She looked at her parents. "She just ate so she should be ready for a nap in an hour or so."

Elizabeth and Joseph nodded.

Steve waited until Catherine was done saying goodbye then lifted the baby from her arms. "This is a first for us." He smiled at Angie. "We've never spent the night apart before. But you're gonna have fun with everybody here and we'll be back to get you in the morning."

"Baaah aaah aaah!" She grabbed his nose.

He kissed her cheek and handed her off to Joseph. His hand lingered on her back for a few seconds. "Call us if you need anything."

"We will," Elizabeth said. She touched his arm. "And you feel free to call if _you_ need to."

He smiled. "Thanks, but I'm fine. Really. I know she couldn't be in better hands."

* * *

Joan was ecstatic that Angie showed more interest today in the Rock & Glow Unicorn than she had on Wednesday when she'd opened it. Steve and Catherine had decided to leave it at the condo for now along with several other toys so they'd have a few less things to cart back and forth when Angie stayed there.

"Ahhh buuuh!" she squealed as she sat between Mary's legs on the floor, slapping at the unicorn with her hand. Her palm landed on one of the buttons and a laughing sound came from the toy, followed by a brief melody that had Angie grinning broadly.

"She likes it!" Joan announced happily from right in front of them.

They played on the floor with the unicorn and several other toys until Angie started showing signs that she was ready for a nap. Grandma Ang announced that she would follow her namesake's lead and lie down as well.

Joan helped Elizabeth put Angie down to sleep in the Pack 'n' Play set up in the master bedroom. As she closed the door quietly, Elizabeth said, "Joan, would you like to work on your plush pillow while Angie and Grandma Ang are napping?"

Joan looked up, her small brow furrowed. "Pillow?" she asked.

"The craft Uncle Joseph and I got for you, remember?"

Joan's eyes lit up in recognition. "Oh!" she cried, running back into the living room and over to the tree where most of her now unwrapped presents were piled. She pulled out a box and held it up. "This one?"

"That's the one," Elizabeth said.

"Mama, we doing this pillow now!"

"I'll help her," Elizabeth assured Mary who had poked her head out of the kitchen where she was finishing up dishes after lunch.

"Thank you," Mary said gratefully. "Joseph and Aaron ran to the hardware store. Something about a new elbow joint to fix the leak under the sink in the guest bathroom."

Elizabeth nodded. "Oh yes, Joseph mentioned he was going to have Aaron help him with that."

"Ann Elizabef!" Joan said, hugging the box close to her chest.

"Yes, honey, I'm coming. Let's do it over here at the table," she said, motioning her over to the dining room table.

Joan put the box on the table and climbed onto her knees in a chair. "You sit by me, Ann Elizabef," she said, pointing to the chair beside her.

"I will. Now let's see how we make this pillow. Could I see the box, please, Joan?"

Joan nodded, pushing it over. "How do we make it?"

"Let's open it and find out." Elizabeth opened the box and took out the supplies.

"Ohhhhh, it's puw'ple," Joan said, picking up the pillow. "I like puw'ple." She gasped. "It's so soft! Feel it!"

Elizabeth ran a finger over the plush pillow. "Ohh, you're right."

"What's this fo'?" Joan asked, pointing to the hard white grid labeled with letters and numbers on the front of the pillow.

"That is like a map to tell us where to put each little piece of fabric so we can make the first letter of your name on the front of the pillow." She pointed to the box. "See, they made an A."

"I have a A in my name!" Joan exclaimed.

Elizabeth smiled. "We could make an A if you want. But what letter does your name start with?"

"J!"

"Yes! Would you like to make a J on the front of your pillow?"

Joan nodded enthusiastically. "Yes yes yes!"

"Okay, let's look at these instructions here to see what we need to do." She unfolded the paper that had a small grid for each letter of the alphabet. "Where's the J?" she asked.

Joan pointed. "Right the'we!"

"Yes! And it says we'll make the letter part light blue, the background pink, and the border purple." She opened a plastic bag full of small fabric squares and dumped them on the table. "So I think the first thing we should do it sort out these squares into three piles. One for blue, one for pink, and one for purple. Can you help me do that?"

Joan nodded seriously. "I know all the _colows_ , Ann Elizabef."

"I know you do, sweetie."

Once they'd sorted the fabric squares, Elizabeth said, "Okay, now we're ready to make your pillow."

"How?" Joan asked.

Elizabeth held up a small purple stylus with a flower shape on the end. "We're going to use this little tool to sort of poke the fabric squares into the grid in the right places, then we'll see the letter J!"

"Can I do it?"

"Of course!" She handed Joan the tool.

"Where do I poke it?" Joan asked, pressing the stylus against the plastic grid on the pillow.

"Here, you need to have a fabric square under there. Do you want to start with the letter?"

Joan nodded, staring at Elizabeth intently.

Elizabeth picked up a blue square and consulted the instructions. "We need to put this at J-2."

"J-2?" Joan asked, thoroughly confused.

"Look at your pillow. Do you see how there are letters and numbers on each square? Let's find K-2." She ran her finger over the grid to show Joan how to find the right square. "Here's the K column, and here's K-2. See?"

Joan leaned close, squinting at the pillow. Finally she nodded. "K-2!" She poked the stylus against the grid.

"Wait, wait, we need the fabric square in there. Would you mind if I try one, just to see how it works?"

Joan paused, looking at the purple stylus somewhat reverently.

"I'll give it right back," Elizabeth promised. "I just want to be sure we're doing it right."

Joan finally relented and handed over the stylus. Elizabeth placed the fabric over the K-2 square and felt around with the end of stylus until she found the cuts in the plastic where she could poke it through.

Joan gasped when Elizabeth pulled the stylus up and the fabric square was now stuck in the pillow, making it look almost like a flower. "You did it!" she cried.

"Now it's your turn." Elizabeth handed the stylus back and Joan.

Joan held the stylus ready, excitedly waiting to try it. Elizabeth held the fabric square over the next spot and helped Joan find the right place to poke the stylus through.

"Just push a little harder," she encouraged the young girl.

There was a little popping sound when Joan successfully pushed the stylus in and she squealed. "I did it!" She beamed at Elizabeth. "Let's make another one!"

"Great job, honey!"

They found that their method of having Elizabeth hold the fabric over the grid square and Joan poke through with the stylus worked well, and they had most of the letter J done by the time Mary joined them at the table.

"Look, Mama!" Joan cried. "Look at my pillow!"

"That's so cool, peanut!" Mary said. "And I am so impressed you're sticking with it." She grinned at Elizabeth. "I was sure you'd have moved on by now."

"Frankly, so did I," Elizabeth admitted.

"Must be Aunt Elizabeth magic."

"I'm going to put this pillow on my bed," Joan said, poking another piece of blue fabric in place. "It's sooo soft. Feel it, Mama!"

Mary reached over to run her fingers over the top of the pillow. "Oh, that feels kinda neat. But I think it's more decorative, peanut. It's not really for sleeping on. It's kind of little."

"Can Baby Angie sleep on it?" Joan asked.

"Baby Angie doesn't use pillows," Elizabeth said. "But that's very nice of you to think of her.

"Maybe your baby doll could use it, peanut," Mary suggested.

Joan beamed at the idea, nodding happily.

Eventually Joan asked Elizabeth to do some of the poking, but she stayed in her chair and handed Elizabeth fabric squares. She was clearly determined to get the pillow finished.

They had just finished the border with the metallic purple fabric squares when Joseph and Aaron came in.

"Wow, pumpkin," Aaron exclaimed. "You made that? That looks amazing!"

"Ann Elizabef helped me."

"That was very nice of her. Did you say thank you?"

"Thank you, Ann Elizabef," Joan replied with a smile.

"You're welcome, honey."

"Oh, you made a pillow for me, Joan?" Joseph said.

"This is _my_ pillow, Unca Joseph!" Joan cried.

"But it has a J on it," he insisted, winking at the others. "J for Joseph."

Joan gaped at him. "No, J for Joan!"

He chuckled and gave her ponytail a gentle tug. "I know, honey, I'm teasing you. You did a great job on your J pillow."

She pouted her lips at him but couldn't hold it and grinned instead. Then her eyes widened. "J for Joseph and J for Joan! We both have Js!"

He smiled. "That's right."

"What's this letter, pumpkin?" Aaron asked, picking up the box and pointing to the pillow on it.

"A!" she immediately said.

"And what's A for?"

"Aaron! And M is for Mary and J is for Joan!"

Mary laughed. "And do you know what else A is for …?" she asked leadingly.

Joan looked over at her with curious eyes.

"Angie!" Mary cried.

Joan gasped. "Baby Angie?"

Aaron chuckled. "Well, not the 'Baby' part. That starts with B. But Angie starts with A."

"Can we make a A pillow for Baby Angie?" Joan asked, looking at Elizabeth hopefully.

"Ohh, we only have one pillow kit, honey," Elizabeth said. "Just enough for your J pillow."

Joseph leaned over to Aaron. "I see a trip to Michael's in my near future," he said under his breath.

Aaron, laughing, couldn't refute the older man's observation.

* * *

Shortly after Angie woke from her nap, Elizabeth's phone buzzed with an incoming call. "It's Steve," she said to the group gathered around the table playing Rummikub. She accepted the call and put it on speaker. "Hi, Steve, I've got you on speaker."

" _Hey, just checking in,_ " he said. " _I figured Angie would be getting up from her nap around now._ "

Elizabeth smiled. "Just a few minutes ago. Joseph's feeding her right now," she said, her eyes meeting her husband's next to her as he gave their granddaughter her bottle. "And her eyes just lit up because she heard your voice."

There was a brief pause and Elizabeth could imagine the small smile gracing Steve's face at that.

" _She slept okay?_ " he asked.

"Like an angel," Elizabeth assured him, placing a gentle hand on top of Angie's head.

"We'e playing Wummikub, Unca Steve!" Joan called, holding a numbered tile in each of her hands as she sat in Aaron's lap. "Gwandma Ang is teaching me!"

"That's right, sweetheart," Ang said.

Mary chuckled. "She's having a little more success now that you're older and don't just want to flip all the pieces over."

"Daddy's helping me," Joan said, grinning back over her shoulder at him. She looked more serious. "But Baby Angie can't play yet because Mama said she might twy to eat the pieces."

" _Sounds like you're having fun,_ " Steve said. " _And we're all still lip gloss free?_ "

Mary rolled her eyes. "Yes, all lip gloss has remained on lips only. And is safely tucked away in my purse and out of reach when not in use."

" _Glad to hear it._ "

"Are you two having a good afternoon?" Elizabeth asked.

Steve cleared his throat. " _Uh … yeah. Absolutely,_ " he said finally. They heard Catherine chuckle in the background. " _Okay, we'll … let you get back to your game. Glad everything's going well._ "

"Thanks for calling," Elizabeth said. "Enjoy the rest of your day together."

" _Thanks. We will._ "

* * *

"Can Smokey have a sundae?" Joan asked as Elizabeth assembled the various toppings on the counter after dinner.

"He can have a dish of plain ice cream," Elizabeth replied. "Maybe a little whip cream on top."

She warmed the caramel and hot fudge in the microwave. "Be careful of these, they're hot," she said as she added them to the sundae bar.

Joan smacked her lips in an exaggerated fashion which made Elizabeth laugh. "I like chocolate!"

"I know you do." Elizabeth grabbed a stack of bowls from the cupboard. "That's why Uncle Joseph and I bought lots."

"Does Baby Angie like chocolate?"

Elizabeth cocked her head to one side. "I don't think she's ever tasted it. But she definitely loves ice cream so you can give her a little of that."

Joan squealed happily.

* * *

"I think eating out here was a good idea." Mary laughed as she gave up trying to wipe all the chocolate and whipped cream off Joan's hands, face and arms. "We can just hose you off before we go back in the house."

"You have to get all the chocolate off of you before we feed Angie." Elizabeth handed Joan a damp towel and the young girl immediately began to clean herself off.

Aaron ruffled Joan's hair. "Looks like Aunt Elizabeth said the magic words."

"I used to use the same trick on Catherine except with her I told her she couldn't play dress up with her uniforms until she was all clean." Elizabeth smiled at the memory.

As soon as Joan had cleaned herself up, and sat still without complaining while Elizabeth wiped the spots she missed, it was time to feed Angie.

"He'we's some yummy ice cweam!" Joan said she she carefully moved the spoon, which contained just a tiny amount of ice cream and whipped cream, towards Angie's mouth, just as she'd been taught. Her face lit up when Angie eagerly took the sweet treat off the spoon. "She likes it, Mama!"

"She sure does," Mary grinned. "Let her swallow that before you give her more."

"I will." Joan carefully put another small bit of ice cream on the spoon. "We'we havin a good time at the sleepovew, awen't we, Baby Angie?" Her eyes sparkled when Angie reached for the spoon.

"Ahhhh Aaah eeeeeeeee!"

"Okay I think that's all the ice cream Baby Angie can have," Elizabeth said. "It's time to get her ready for bed."

"And you won't be far behind her, pumpkin," Aaron said.

* * *

After changing into her new pjs and brushing her teeth, Joan crawled up on the bed between Elizabeth and Joseph who was holding the book she'd chosen.

"Easy, peanut, remember not to bounce too hard near Angie," Mary said from the doorway.

"I'll be ca'eful, Mama," she shout-whispered, as though the quieter voice would conjure less bouncing.

"Okay, why don't you show Angie what you have for her?"

"Another present?" Joseph steadied Joan as Elizabeth held the baby to the side until everyone was settled.

"This is like mine, Unca Joseph. I got him when I was little like Baby Angie." She held up a stuffed llama clad in red pajamas. "He's fwom the _book_." She held it up for her cousin to see and squealed with delight when the baby made a grab for it and held it against her face.

"She likes him! Mama, Baby Angie likes llama!" She clapped and explained, "Now we can both have llama, Baby Angie. He does lots of fun things in the books."

Joseph grinned and reached for a book from the pile on the bedside table. "Like this one?"

Joan gasped. "Unca Joseph, you have the book!"

Elizabeth shared a smile with Mary and turned to her husband. "Maybe that should be our first one to read."

"Five books?" Joan grinned.

"Five? Wow." Elizabeth's brows shot up in exaggerated surprise.

"Unca Joseph said five, right?" She checked for confirmation.

He nodded and opened the first page of _Llama, Llama, Red Pajamas_. "Joan is four and Angie will be one, so …"

Mary's laugh floated through the room. "That's … perfect. I'll leave you to it, I'm gonna help Aaron finish cleaning up."

As she walked down the hall, she could hear Joseph begin to read and a smile graced her lips.

* * *

"Pwease, Uncle Joseph, I love this stowy." Joan clutched her copy of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas to her chest.

His heart melted and his face broke into a small smile. "How could I possibly say no?"

Joan threw her arms around his neck. "Thank you. I'm glad I bwought this book with me."

Mary and Aaron watched the scene unfold from their vantage point just outside the door where they'd gone to check how storytime was progressing. When they were sure everything was going smoothly they headed back to the kitchen to prep a breakfast casserole for the morning.

"Look at how self-assured she's getting." Aaron smiled proudly. "Polite and well-mannered but never afraid to ask for what she wants."

Mary nodded. "She's growing up."

"Not too fast I hope." Aaron sighed. "I'm not sure I'm ready for that. The thought of her becoming more independent is scary. I worry that some elementary school mean girl will hurt her feelings or some pint-sized lothario will break her heart."

Mary rubbed his arm. "What exactly do you think kindergarten is like?" She smiled.

He chuckled. "You know what I mean."

"I do." She laid her head on his shoulder. "But like you said, she's self-assured, and smart and has lots of strong female role models. And we'll both be there beside her every step of the way."

Aaron grimaced. "You may have to stop me from getting on the school bus with her."

"I promise I will." Mary spread foil over the top of the casserole dish. "She asked me this afternoon if Joseph and Elizabeth are kinda like her grandparents even though she calls them aunt and uncle."

Aaron opened the refrigerator door. "What'd you tell her?"

"I was trying to figure out how to explain our family tree to her but she got distracted by Smokey chasing his tail and forgot all about it." Mary placed the casserole in the top shelf. "It got me thinking, though … about Doris."

Aaron leaned his back against the counter, pulled his wife in front of him and draped his arms over her shoulders. "How so?"

She ran her hands along the front of his shirt. "Mostly how she doesn't even know about her grandchildren. Either one of them. And how strangely okay I am with that."

"Really?"

Mary nodded and Aaron could tell she truly meant what she was saying. No false bravery.

"I'm proud of the family we've built for Joan. She has parents who love her and would never even think of leaving her to traipse off around the world. She has family and friends. She has your folks and Joseph and Elizabeth as examples of what good grandparents are like. She's never gonna feel alone or unloved."

"Never!" Aaron leaned in and softly kissed her lips.

"It's my mother's loss." Mary leaned her forehead against her husband's. "Because our family is pretty damn awesome."

* * *

Once both girls were in their beds for the night, having received good night kisses from everyone, the adults settled on the back deck to enjoy the warm evening air.

Elizabeth was returning from a quick trip to the bathroom when her phone buzzed. She took it out of her pocket and saw Steve's name on the screen.

"When I said feel free to call if you need to, I didn't think it'd be more than once," Elizabeth teased gently when she'd answered the call.

" _I'm sorry_ ," Steve said immediately. " _I don't want you to think I don't trust you and Joseph completely, because I do, it's just …_ "

"It's just that it's your first full day and night away from your baby girl and it's a little tougher than you thought it would be."

She heard him sigh. " _Yeah._ "

"It's perfectly all right, Steve," she assured him. "I understand. Truly. It's because you love your daughter and you've gotten used to being right there with her. The first time Catherine stayed overnight with my mother I was exactly the same way. And so was Joseph."

" _It actually helps a lot to hear that,_ " he said.

"I thought it might."

" _She went down for the night okay?_ "

"She did. And I just looked in on her, she's sleeping peacefully. We're all very lucky, she really is such a good baby."

She could hear the smile in his voice when he said, " _She is._ " He exhaled slowly. " _Okay, I'll let you go. Thank you, Elizabeth._ "

"You're welcome, Steve. Anytime."

* * *

Elizabeth peeked in the Pack 'n' Play before slipping into the bathroom around 2 a.m. Minutes later, she couldn't resist another look at her granddaughter who, perhaps sensing movement or the increased light from when the door was opened a bit, rolled over and blinked up at her.

They'd settled her on her back, but Angie had turned to her tummy on her own and just pushed over again.

"Hey beautiful girl, you're at Grandma and Grandpa's, remember? Safe and sound," Elizabeth whispered while placing a hand on her tummy. Smiling when the baby did, she waited to see if she would settle and she did. Sticking a fist in her mouth, Angie continued to smile sleepily around it for a few seconds until she drifted back off.

When she slid into bed she turned to see Joseph's broad smile. "Back to sleep?"

Elizabeth nodded and rolled onto her side to face the baby, feeling her husband shift and do the same. They stayed like that for a full minute, his hand resting on the curve of her waist, hers tucked under her chin, neither speaking. Both watched the baby through the mesh of the portable bed as her mouth formed a little 'o' before relaxing into a smile.

Finally Elizabeth sighed and said, "Just like …" as Joseph whispered, "Catherine used to …"

They chuckled softly. "She used to make that same little face." His smile was evident in his voice.

"And she'd flip over like that if she heard anything." She shook her head. "Always so inquisitive." Elizabeth turned to face him. "Confession?"

"I'll bet I know it."

"It's taking every ounce of willpower not to pick her up and cuddle her."

He kissed the back of her head. "Steady there, Grandma."

"Only because I want her well rested." She sighed dramatically and they laughed softly again. Before settling against the pillows and adjusting the light blanket, she took a last glance at the tiny person who held everyone's heart.

Joseph smiled. "She's got her own personality already, so she's very much Angie, but when she's asleep like this she really looks like her mother. I can't help see a lot of Catherine."

"Definitely," she agreed, her eyes drifting to the bedside table where among other photos, a picture of Catherine at about Angie's age was visible in the glow of the baby's nightlight. "And when she focuses on something, you can see her thinking like her mother did … does."

"She's so intelligent already in addition to looking like my beautiful wife and daughter." His voice held both love and pride. "How could I not see a lot of her mother in her?"

Just then, Angie shifted. Her eyes blinking open, she looked in every direction, grunting slightly as she turned to focus on a corner of the room. Seemingly satisfied, she made a soft coo and closed her eyes with a sigh, asleep again in seconds.

Joseph shook his head with an amused grin. It looked for all the world like their six month old granddaughter had just checked the perimeter of the room before settling down. "And quite a bit of her father."

She chuckled lightly at that.

Between them, his hand found hers, lacing their fingers. "Well, was the long awaited sleepover as good as you thought it would be?"

She sighed happily, squeezing his hand. "Absolutely." She smiled. "Is it wrong that I'm already counting the hours till the next one?" she asked.

"Nope," he said. "Because I'm doing the exact same thing."

* * *

 **Hope you enjoyed! Stay tuned tomorrow to find out what Catherine and Steve did at** _ **their**_ **sleepover :-)**

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